I am going to micro analyse the scene from ‘American sniper’ when Chris Kyle, played by Bradley Cooper shoots a Taliban soldier carrying a rocket launcher and a little boy then picks it up. American Sniper is a film based on the biography of Chris Kyle (America’s most dangerous sniper), it was released in 2014 and was directed by Clint Eastwood. This essay will focus on the way that key micro features help to create a realistic film world for the viewer. The selected micro features are … In the selected scene from American Sniper we see Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) laying on a rooftop glancing down on the street being an ‘overwatch’ for the American troops below. The mise-en-scene for this part of the scene looks well thought through, for instance he is seen in a dusty, bomb damaged urban area with rubble and burnt out cars around. He is laying on some sort of improvised bed with blankets on. This use of props is convincing for the audience because this could have been created from junk that was just laying around that has put together to give him the higher angle that he needs to obtain a better view. As well as the setting and props that appear in this scene another important element of mise-en-scene in this section of the film is costume. Chris is wearing a brown/yellow uniform which is instantly recognisable as an army uniform. This costume helps the audience develop their understanding of who Chris Kyle is (an American soldier), where the scene is set (the desserts of the middle east) and his role ( a covert sniper who needs to remain hidden to do his job). The connotation of the uniform is that the audience perceive Chris Kyle as a hero, a soldier sanctions by his country to fight, a protector of others and a man with the power of life and death at his finger tips. The uniform and its connotations help the audience form an emotional attachment to him as a character. The next shot in this scene is a close up of Chris’s face that appears to be emotionless as he glances down the scope protecting his men. Throughout this part of the scene it is calm as he studies the battlefield and watches the spot where there is a possible threat. The audience realise that he is under control, confident, and a very capable soldier. This helps them to feel confident that he is very good at his job an will be successful in his mission, reinforcing his heroic status. This status promoted further as there are no signs of nerves or panic even though the situation is tense and dangerous. The next camera angle is a point of view shot that has a slight sway to make the audience feel like it is Chris holding the rifle. This technique places the audience in the action and again helps to build their attachment to Chris as a character. They are literally in the action seeing the world through Chris’s eyes. When a member of the Taliban appears in his sights he keeps him in his crosshairs watching his every move. Every few seconds the camera cuts back to Chris’s face which stays completely emotionless. Even when the Taliban fighter aims an RPG at the American Humvee his emotions stay the same. At this point, without showing any change in his breathing or emotions, Chris takes his shot and kills the Taliban soldier. The lack of emotion shown and matter of fact way that he kills shows the audience that he is ruthless and that killing is not a big deal to him; that he has accepted his role and is comfortable with the things that he has to do to protect the other soldiers. The attention to detail of Bradley Coopers’ performance is remarkable. He watches on relentlessly with complete focus waiting for the perfect moment to execute his shot and this portrays a snipers attitude very effectively. The audience feel that this is the way that all snipers behave and provides them with an insight in to the emotions, or lack of emotions, that they need to become effective...
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...﻿The Sniper Questions
1. The names of the two sides involved in the conflict are the “Republicans” and the “Free Staters”. The protagonist (main character) is on the Republican side.
2. The story is set at night. The text states that “machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night.” (O’ Flaherty 1) I believe that this is the case because they are fighting a civil war and the darkness makes the plot more intense since he decides to take a risk of lighting a cigarette.
3. The snipers decision to smoke endangers his safety because it is dark out, and the smoke will be easily seen by his opponents or enemies that are watching him. I believe that he decides to take the risk anyway, because he is there fighting a war and death is nothing new to him, in case that he was shot at he would not exactly be taken by surprise because that is the purpose of him being a sniper.
4. I believe that the cigarette and alcohol help the sniper cope with the situation because he does not have to experience killing someone or the thought of it. It is none that cigarettes and alcohol are common within wars, I once read A Long Way Gone, a memoir by Ishmael Beah and he also stated that alcohol, drugs and cigarettes helped him get through the day and eventually became an addiction to him because it was the best way for him to cope with killing to survive. Also, the narrator states that the sniper has not...

...﻿Jessica Smith
Instructor Ashley Allen
Composition 101
February 10, 2015
AmericanSniper
Once the lights dim, the screen expands, and the audience becomes silent, the greatest true story to be told is about to begin.
Chris Kyle, “Legend,” grew up in a small town in Texas with an aspiration to be a cowboy. He then realized he needed something different, more rewarding, which is when he decided to utilize his special talent by becoming a sniper in the navy SEALs. While in Iraq, Chris ventures out to protect his country from a villainous Iraqi warrior, “the Butcher.” Extremely difficult obstacles came about while in combat, but this did not stop him from reaching a record-breaking160 snipes. Kyle possessed an incredible skill set that caused his fellow soldiers to have an extreme level of respect toward him, and the nickname “Legend” was created due to their admiration. He even found himself in situations that he had to choose between protecting his country and doing what is morally correct. Almost every decision made by Chris, was one that benefited America in the greatest way. But his closest friends, small children, and even his enemies dying right in front of his eyes caused his mental state to be extremely damaged. Kyle then had to live the rest of his post-military life trying to cope with his Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Not only was this movie and story an inspiration to millions, but also very informative of the...

...“Al-Shaitan”
“The AmericanSniper” by Chris Kyle is an account of the deadliest Americansniper ever, called “the devil” by the enemies he hunted and “the legend” by his Navy SEAL brothers. From 1999 to 2009, U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle recorded the most career sniper kills in United States military history. The Pentagon has officially confirmed more than 150 of Kyle's kills (the previous American record was 109). Iraqi insurgents feared Kyle so much they named him al-Shaitan (“the devil”) and placed a bounty on his head. Kyle earned legendary status among his fellow SEALs, Marines, and U.S. Army soldiers, whom he protected with deadly accuracy from rooftops and stealth positions. Kyle presents the gripping and unforgettable accounts of his extraordinary battlefield experiences through paper and pen and now ranks to many people as one of the greatest war memoirs of all time but to few a man representing immorality and death. The major question that is being asked is, “Killing people is wrong, so why is it okay in war?”
To begin, here is a background of the character that I have chosen to analyze. Chris Kyle was a native Texan, born in Odessa, Texas, and was the son of a Sunday school teacher and a deacon. Kyle started his passion for shooting after his father bought him his first gun at 8 years old, a bolt-action .30-06 Springfield rifle. Later on and after school, Kyle became a...

...living creature. Wars are created due to the people’s angers and disappointment, but they never have the great purpose to justify it. In the story, The Sniper, the Republican sniper who has been desensitized from seeing many dead people before his eyes. During the civil war, he sees how the click of his sniper can easily take the life of the man and the old woman in the matter of a second. He shot the sniper with his revolver, but due to his curiosity he discovers the victim is his brother. We can see the theme of war is introduced to the story by each bad, disturbing of the human life after the war. We can see the author indicated the idea of cruelty, irrational, and futility of the war from the story, The Sniper.
The cruelty of the war is hinted throughout the story by the action of the young sniper. The reason he joined the war might be, because of his youth and “the cold gleam of the fanatic on his eyes.” Since he is in his youth, he might have the alacrity and enthusiasm of the child who is filled with obsessive interest in the lust of war. Though he had been used to look at death, he later becomes bitter and disgusted looking at the people he has killed especially his brother forced by the cruelty of the war. In war, there are no boundaries for ages, gender, location, time of the day, and family ties. This young sniper would be a typical example for its cruelty. As he...

...﻿“AmericanSniper Summative Essay”
By Kevin Zvonarek
The book I chose for the summative essay assignment was “AmericanSniper” by Chris Kyle. This book is about the courageous and thrilling memoir of the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history. With over 100 documented kills during his four tours of duty, Chris Kyle has shed light on the dangerous brave life of a sniper. During his four tours of duty in the Iraq war he has come close to death and saved countless lives. He changed a lot from just being a country boy and became what he describes as a man. The war really changed his perspective on his civilian life. The significance of the Iraq war was to help free the Iraqi civilians of their dictator, Saddam Hussein, and the radical Islamic insurgents who terrorized the Iraqi’s after the fall of Saddam Hussein.
The time period this book is set in is right before 9/11 and during the Iraq war (1999-2009). As he grows up in Odessa, Texas he grow interested into being a ranch manager. By becoming a ranch hand he found himself in the state of Colorado where he enlisted for the Navy a second time. He joined the Navy in February 1999 and trained to be a Navy SEAL in Coronado, Calif. The rugged challenging training he had to go through to become a Navy SEAL really showed him that it isn’t easy being a solider and that he had to work extremely hard and not give into the powerful temptation...

... 2013.
“The Sniper”
Why, after centuries of futile destruction, does man persist in waging war? In the short story “The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty, the author focuses on the Irish civil war of the 1920’s. On a Dublin roof, a Republican sniper struggles to destroy his enemy. Although the sniper is an experienced and ingenious combatant, the story’s outcome clearly conveys an anti-war theme. As General Sherman observed, “War is hell.”
The sniper is practiced at war: he has “the eyes of a man who is used to looking at death” (O’Flaherty 1). (1). He has witnessed great destruction in battle, fighting for the Republican side in the Irish civil war.
The sniper’s experience as a soldier is reflected as well in the way he moves. When he listened to the sound of a bullet approaching to him, he showed that he was alert: “there was a flash and a bullet over his head. He dropped immediately” (1). He has acted wisely as an experienced soldier does hiding himself from the sight of his enemy.
The sniper was in pain when he got shot in his forearm, but this event didn’t stop him. He thought of how to deal with the issue: “the sniper lay still a long time nursing his wounded arm and planning to scape” (2). The solution he found for his wounded arm proves that he was astute besides he was skillful at the same time. It could be inferred that the sniper ripped a...

...produce. Therefore, Civil War is a major dilemma that has occurred though out history and been utilized in various books to show the lasting effects of its division within countries, as well as destruction.
Civil War moves people to act without thinking, it makes people to act without reflection and it causes death and killings that were not intentional. The Sniper by Liam O’Flaherty is one of the books in which the author reveals the intricacy of the destructive forces within the world that tears the bond between families. The Sniper is moved by civil war to become ruthless and heartless. He proceeds in his killings without stopping to reflect on his actions. The sniper kills his brother in ignorance of the fact that He fired a deathly bullet towards a family member. He kills his blood brother, and when the gun shots came to an end, He comes to realization, as he holds his brother in a pool of blood. “Then the sniper turned over the dead body and looked into his brother’s face.” The reader is brought to the reflection of the terrible effects of the civil war in tearing the bonds between families apart. The sniper who had killed his brother because of the civil war was consumed with hate towards this type of war for “he began to gibber to himself, cursing the war…” (O’Flaherty 264). He now hated the war because of the terrible things he did. This shows that civil war is a frustrating event that seems...

...&#8220;The Sniper&#8221;
written by Liam O &#8216; Flaherty
As a socialistic society we live in we find ourselves in positions were conflicts arise between friends or family. &#8220;The Sniper&#8221; was written by Liam O &#8216; Flaherty to express a subtle yet powerful opinion on such a conflict. With references this essay will analyse the short story bringing to light the structure used to contribute to the theme.
The basic plot of the story is based during an evening within the Irish civil wars. It tells of a republican sniper sitting on a rooftop and neutralising enemy units as the cross a bridge. When a free-states sniper shows himself on an opposite roof they wage a fierce and innovative war to see who would end up the better. Eventually the republican sniper gains the upper hand and after taking a bullet in the arm destroys the worthy opponent. After a curious inspection to the identity of the enemy sniper he finds himself looking into the eyes of his dead brother.
The story is written in 3rd person P.O.V as to give an idea of the setting, and as they waged their war the outside person could give unbiased information of which would have been limited if it were to be presented in a 1st person P.O.V. We wouldn&#8217;t have got an unbiased opinion of the two snipers, which defeats the purpose of the theme.
How the setting was expressed is also...